PTA with Bhutan may come into force from July

The Preferential Trade Agreement (PTA) between Bangladesh and Bhutan is expected to come into force from July 01 this year - more than one and a half years after signing a deal in this regard, said officials.
On December 06, 2020, the deal was inked to boost bilateral trade between the two countries.
The Bhutanese government has proposed the date and sought concurrence of the authorities concerned of the Bangladesh government to the proposal.
Earlier, the PTA was ratified by the third parliament of Bhutan during its sixth session in 2021.
The foreign affairs ministry of Bhutan has also completed its internal procedure for the implementation of the agreement, according to the Bangladesh mission in Thimphu.
The authorities concerned of both the countries will issue SROs for the implementation of the PTA from the same date as per the Article XXII of BB-PTA, reads a document.
Bangladesh and Bhutan are good regional neighbours. Bhutan was the first country to recognise Bangladesh's independence.
Under the deal, 100 Bangladeshi products, including 10 new goods, will enjoy duty-free access to the Bhutanese market.
On the other hand, 34 Bhutanese items, including 16 fresh goods, will also enjoy duty-free access to the Bangladeshi market.
"It is the first PTA in nearly 50 years," said a high official of the commerce ministry.
"We are working on the issue and we will soon communicate with the Bhutanese authorities concerned," he added.
The two multilateral FTAs (free trade agreements) that Bangladesh has signed so far are: South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA) agreement and BIMSTEC (Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation) FTA.
On the other hand, three multilateral PTA deals which Bangladesh is a party to are: Asia-Pacific Trade Agreement (APTA), TPS-OIC (Trade Preferential Scheme among member states of the OIC), and D-8 (Developing-8) PTA.
Economists advocate signing PTAs and FTAs to address the challenges when Bangladesh graduates to the next level, saying that preferential trade deals will help boost exports significantly.
"We need to sign several PTAs and FTAs before (Bangladesh's) graduation to reap the benefits of the least-developed country category…," said an official involved in this process.
The volume of bilateral trade between Bangladesh and Bhutan is gradually expanding.
Bangladeshi jackets and blazers, plywood, particle board, mineral and carbonated water, green tea, orange juice, baby clothes, men's trousers and shorts, pineapple juice, and guava juice will enjoy duty-free access to the Bhutanese market under the signed deal, said the official.
On the other hand, Bhutanese mineral water and carbonated water, wheat bran, quartzite, cement clinker, wooden furniture, portland cement, soap, milk, natural honey, wheat or meslin flour, homogenised preparations of jams, fruit jellies, marmalades, wooden particle boards, ferrosilicon, iron bars and rods, and non-alloy steel will enjoy the same facility in the Bangladeshi market under the PTA, he added.
Currently, apparel, food items, plastics, pharmaceuticals, furniture and electrical products are being exported from Bangladesh.
Generally, Bangladesh imports chemicals, pulp, boulder, fruit and vegetables.
The volume of bilateral trade between the two countries stood at US$57.90 million in fiscal year (FY) 2018-19. It was only $26.52 million in FY 2012-13.
Bangladeshi export volume to the neighbouring country was over $6.89 million in the FY 2020-21, according to the Export Promotion Bureau data.

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